Arcom, the regulatory authority for audiovisual and digital communication, issued formal notice to Europe 1 on June 27, 2024. For what reason and what does this decision imply?
Arcom is raging. The audiovisual and digital communications regulator stepped up to sanction Europe 1 on June 27. Why, and what does this imply?
A show by Cyril Hanouna
In his press release, the audiovisual policeman indicates that this measure concerns “processing news related to legislative elections in the show ‘We walk on the head‘ from June 17 to 26, 2024″. A program hosted by Cyril Hanouna.
“Critical and virulent”
After citing several passages broadcast by this program, Arcom indicates that “the electoral news of ‘La France insoumise’ and the ‘New Popular Front’ […] has been treated in a systematically critical and virulent manner in often pejorative and outrageous terms.
The regulator adds that “the treatment of electoral news was largely unambiguous, most of the guests, a large majority of whom came from the same political movement, having made converging statements, while formulating strong criticisms of ‘La France insoumise’ and the ‘Nouveau Front Populaire’, without another point of view being able to be sufficiently expressed“.
And it’s up to Arcom to crack down, explaining that “the company Europe 1 Télécomagnie is formally notifiedregarding the Europe 1 service”, with a reminder, that of “exposing with constant concern of measure and honesty the reports, comments and presentations resulting from the elections”.
Formal notice: what does it involve?
On its website, Arcom explains its mission, namely “prevent before sanctioning“. Thus, the formal notice is not a sanction: in fact, this measure “has warning value. It is sent when Arcom notes a breach linked to legislative or regulatory obligations or to conventional commitments.
As our colleagues at AFP recalled, the regulator had already reminded the radio station of its obligations regarding “pluralism” on June 20. This is what the process stipulates, since the regulator points out that “most of the formal notices are themselves preceded by a warning letter or a firm reminder letter to the regulations.”
After that ?
The formal notice is therefore not part of the various sanctions that can be imposed. But if this warning is not heard by the offender, “the rapporteur decides whether the facts brought to his attention justify the opening of a sanction procedure“. And depending on the seriousness of the facts, Arcom has several strings to its bow:
- the suspension of the edition, broadcasting, distribution of the service(s) of a category of program, of a part of the program or of one or more advertising sequences for one month or more
- the reduction of the duration of the authorization or agreement within the limit of one year
- a financial penalty possibly accompanied by a suspension of the publication or distribution of the service(s) or part of the program
- the withdrawal of authorization or the unilateral termination of the agreement.
